1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to data communication apparatus and method and, more particularly to data communication apparatus and method which performs data communication such that the communication protocol for data communication between a host device and a target device is not limited on the target device.
Further, the present invention relates to a data communication apparatus and method in a network where devices having a plurality of protocols are connected via a serial bus.
2. Description of Related Art
Various types of systems which transfer data to a printer via a bus are known. For example, a known technique is to output data from a computer to the printer by using a defacto standard interface such as a SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) or Centronics interface.
However, printer manufacturers respectively provide a printer protocol unique to their printer for transferring data to the printer via these interfaces, thus lacking versatility.
Particularly, upon outputting print data by using a serial interface connecting various types of devices, such as an IEEE 1394 interface, it is desirable to solve the above problem of the lack of versatility.